Always one to pursue useless knowledge wherever he can find it in a seemingly never-ending quest to achieve the improbable and downright unlikely status of modern-day Renaissance man, Mark Bittmann has indulged his desire to never be lost in any conversation, by developing an arcane understanding of things of little consequence or import while maintaining his alleged status as a small fish in a small pond.
As long as his self-indulgent whim is catered to, he manages to sustain the facade of someone under the misperception that others care about what he thinks. With a ubiquity normally reserved for greenhouse gasses, he chases his random and inconsequential thoughts with all the tenacity of a banana peel. This is his life, his curse, and his twisted and maniacal way of impressing the ladies.
I have observed many a fan at many a convention queuing up to have a creator sign a copy of a comic book. There are certainly better ways to go about garnering a personal memento from a comic book creator without having them vandalize the cover of an issue they worked on by signing their John Hancock upon it. And make no mistake about it: unless one finds a fan who collects autographed comics, a collector will have a difficult time selling it due to the fact that the value of a comic book plummets the moment non-printer’s ink hits the cover. Collected editions of a story one also possesses in original monthly installments serve as a way to have a particular story autographed without devaluing a collectable comic book. Having a shirt or other form of memorabilia signed can be a memorable experience and a way to win the envy of others. I had the one and only Jim Steranko sign a Nick Fury shirt that I bought on the spot a couple years back. Many a fan since has expressed how cool it is when I wear it and they usually want to know how I came about getting it signed. After relating the story of how I came across him at a convention, fellow comic book fans act stunned, expressing that they didn’t know he still attended them. Wearing a signed article of clothing shares the experience and sparks conversation.
I have a copy of Marvel: Five Fabulous Decades of the World's Greatest Comics, which has been autographed in abundance over the past few years. When I began taking it to conventions, naturally the first stop I made was to the Marvel booth. May as well go straight to the source, right? One of the first signatures I obtained for it was from Stan “The Man” Lee himself. He signed on his introduction page and even threw in an “Excelsior” to boot upon my gushing request. Sitting next to him were Romitas Senior and Junior, all too willing to comply as well. There’s a wealth of creators at conventions whose names and drawings are in this coffee table book and they all know what page to turn to find something of theirs to sign. There is also Marvel Universe which is also a coffee table book and DC Comics: Sixty Years of the World's Favorite Comic Book Heroes, which are both chock full of information about the characters and the worlds they exist in, as well as having many an artist’s drawing reprinted therein and suitable for autographing.
Because the book was published prior to his making a splash with the publication of Marvels, I offered Alex Ross the opportunity to sign anywhere he pleased the first time I met him. Instead of signing by a particular character, passage or drawing he admired, Mr. Ross chose to sign my book “all over Todd McFarlane’s face”. I heartily encouraged him to do so and he did with evident, equal measures of both enthusiasm for the act of doing so and disdain for the subject he was covering up with a metallic gold pen.
Autographs aren’t the only way a creator can give a personal memento to a fan. Many artists in the industry will even do a sketch if asked nicely and if the lines aren’t too long. Most are done rather loosely, because frankly they have better things to do than spend an hour making perfect character renderings for a handful of people when many others want to meet them also. Other creators sketch for free and engage in conversation with the recipient of the sketch whilst drawing. If they do go out of their way to draw something that may take some time, offering to go get them some sort of refreshment while they are sitting in a convention center foldout chair is probably something they would enjoy and appreciate. It may even lead to a little extra detail in the sketch if they take a particular shine to a fan displaying such a generous nature. Brent Anderson once gave me a cookie from a box someone had brought him. Some artists may even charge $20.00 or so, if they are doing tight pencils or something relatively elaborate. Some will even respond to a commission to draw a fully rendered and inked piece – for a price.
I have gotten into the habit of taking a blank book with me to conventions featuring creators I haven’t met yet. Dave McKean, Chriss Cross, Sergio Aragones, John J. Muth, Duane McDuffie, Scott Hampton, Tim Sale, Jae Lee, Brent Anderson among many, many others have been kind enough to lend their considerable drawing talents to my blank book. I noticed Garth Ennis and Steve Dillon at the DC/Vertigo booth when they were still doing Hellblazer and Mr. Dillon took the time to draw a profile of John Constantine on a comic backing board for me. When I discovered Moebius would be at a convention I was attending, I briefly lamented the fact that I hadn’t brought anything of his with me because the possibility of Moebius being at a convention in the United States never entered my mind and I must have overlooked it in the convention literature. Then I proceeded to get a clue and sought out the comic I would most like him to autograph that I could find for sale quickly as time was limited and the line shaped up to be immense. I already owned a mint set of the Silver Surfer story he did with Stan Lee, but they were at home. I didn’t care if they were devalued. I just wanted to meet and get an autograph from another master of the form on his work. So I bought another set right there at the Con. I got line for my moment with greatness, thinking of something to say in what little French I knew. I finally had what I wanted to say practiced and ready, only to discover the guy in front of me to be fluent – bastard. So I kept my banter to “bon jour” and “merci beaucoup,” had him sign the comics and listened to him say “you’re welcome” in my native tongue. Turns out he probably speaks English better than most people I know.
So I guess one needs to consider if it is more important to have a comic in perfect condition, or to have the autograph of someone whose skills they admire on a copy of their originally published work. If selling the comic is not an option, then its value isn’t measured in coin and any future appreciation lay in the heart of its owner. That’s a good thing because it means the comic is desired for the story’s execution and in appreciation of the talent on display. If the monetary value of the comic book is forefront in the collectors mind, there are, as noted above, plenty of alternatives to having a creator spread graffiti all over it. If one is a collector that keeps in mind the monetary value of their collection and is going to go to a convention seeking autographs, they should be prepared for the consequences of having an original comic book written upon and, if necessary, find another item to be signed if they don’t want their comics monetarily devalued. However, the luxury of having what you want signed available for sale on the spot isn’t always a given and even if it is, signings usually have a time limit, so the creator in question may not be there upon returning from your quest for that copy of Captain Wanker #1. There are obvious cons to a pro’s signature on a comic book, but that doesn’t mean one has to go without collecting the autographs they desire.
